How To Be the Best Dressed at Bestival

Photo by Jake Lewis

Bestival is the Summer’s last gasp – your final opportunity to get intoxicated in the sun until you’re actually looking forward to collapsing back into your duvet for the rainy Winter months to come.

The festival takes place each September on the Isle of Wight; a haven for pensioners, people that take day-trips on ferries, and music fans that want to get loose to a varied line-up that, this year, includes everything from Outkast to Sophie-fucking-Ellis Bextor.

Bestival enforces a strict fancy dress code – and this year’s theme is Desert Island Disco. If you’re wondering what exactly to wear to a disco on a desert island, we’ve got your back. London drag collective Sink the Pink have performed at Bestival for the last 6 years, know way more about dressing up than us, and are fabulous costumers.

With that in mind, we asked Sink the Pink members Jonbenet Blond, Amy Zing, Jay Barry Matthew, and Hugo to model some cheap and easy looks.

Find as many sequins as you can and go pure disco glam, as modelled by our girl Jonbenet Blonde. As a Northern Irish queen it is also useful to note she is ticking two boxes here as the “island in Desert Island Disco. Yes, we love a loose link to a dress up theme at Sink The Pink.

No one wants to be too 'obviously' linked to a theme. Last year’s was ‘HMS Bestival’ and about 8000 sailors turned up – a big fashion no no. It’s all about bucking the trend or buying a boring Smiffys costume and more about the homemade, DIY approach to fancy dress

The 'find everything you own even remotely linked to 'desert' 'island' or 'disco' and put it all on' (and then put even more things on), approach is best. The Sink The Pink philosophy for getting dressed is 'more is more'. This is a particular favourite for Sink the Pink founder Amy Zing, who is modelling this look. Use this philosophy and your life will be forever fabulous.

Let’s be honest, after you’ve spent most of your Bestival budget on cereal bars and a ferry ticket, among other things, you might be after a more economically viable outfit. A budget constraint based look for a Sink The Pinker can usually be found in a Dalston pound shop. This use of a key seasonal bath mat by Jay Barry Matthews is a fine example of STP eco chic at its finest. Oh and there's a loose festival boho feel to it too, USE YOUR IMAGINATION, it's fashion darling!

A desert island disco hey? There must be some natives in strong fashion looks to greet you… Well hey gurl! Check this Hugo bitch, she's werking a high fashion African Print, teamed with a leather jodhpur (these islands can get cold, especially ones ending in 'of Wight’, right?).

Follow Amelia on Twitter: @MillyAbraham

Catch Sink the Pink at The Grand Palace of Entertainment Friday and Saturday 1-4am, the mainstage Saturday 11.30am and leading the parade Saturday afternoon

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